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“I am convinced that he believes it is worthwhile to try,” Castro said of the president, adding that Obama spoke of global competition and the need to harness the achievements of immigrants and ensure business has the labor force it needs.

The discussions also included New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, both Republicans. There were no lawmakers on the guest list of about 70 people.

The White House billed the closed-door meeting as a chance to discuss immigration laws that would help improve U.S. security needs and the economy.

Obama and congressional Democrats want a comprehensive reform plan that addresses the issue of the 11 million immigrants in the country illegally. But Republicans oppose plans that offer illegal immigrants a path to citizenship, which they call “amnesty.”

“Any form of amnesty will only encourage more illegal immigration,” said Rep. Lamar Smith, R-San Antonio and chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, which oversees federal immigration laws.

House GOP leaders are instead weighing border security and worksite enforcement measures, including a mandatory version of the volunteer E-Verify program that lets businesses check on a job applicant's immigration status.

So far, immigration reform has been shelved by Republicans in the House.

Limited legislation could be filed in the Senate by Democrats, where a sweeping immigration reform bill died in 2007.

Tuesday's discussion came just a couple of weeks after Obama announced his intention to seek re-election, but Castro dismissed politics as the motivation.

Regardless, he said, “I don't much care how comprehensive immigration reform gets done, I would just like to see it get done — whether it is before a political season, during a political season or after a political season.”

In the 2012 presidential election, Hispanics, who traditionally vote 2 to 1 for Democrats, will be an important voting bloc for Obama. They were pivotal for Democrats in the 2010 midterm elections in Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Florida.

In the 2008 presidential race, Obama lost Texas to Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., by 12 percentage points, or 44 percent to 56 percent.

The president told a Dallas radio station this week that he intends to be competitive in the Lone Star State.